China’s manufacturing PMI dropped by 0.3 pts from the previous month to 51.4 in December, still the second highest level in the year. The December reading indicates that the manufacturing sector in China has continued to expand at a relatively fast pace recently.

9 of the 12 sub-indices were lower than their respective levels in the previous month, while 2 sub-indices were higher than their respective levels in the previous month. The output index dropped by 0.6 pts in December, showing a deceleration in output growth. Meanwhile, the new orders index stayed stable at 53.2 in December, after having risen for two consecutive months. 1 The input prices index went up further to 69.6 in December, well above the critical 50-mark. The latest reading indicates that the prices of production inputs have increased sharply.

By size of enterprises, the PMI of ‘large enterprises’ fell to 53.2 in December from 53.4 in November. The PMI of ‘medium enterprises’ dropped to 49.6 in December from 50.1 in November, while the PMI of ‘small enterprises’ went down to 47.2 in December from 47.4 in November.

The output index was 53.3 in December, down from 53.9 in November. The output index of ‘large enterprises’ went down to 56.1 in December from 57.1 in November; the output index of ‘medium enterprises’ was 50.8 in December, down slightly from 50.9 in November; the output index of ‘small enterprises’ rose to 46.5 in December from 46.4 in November.

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